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1 FEBRUARY 2018 What s happening in the life of St Andrew s and St Bartholomew s The polite answer is Fine. The real answer might be somewhat different. Suppose someone asked you more specifically, How are you doing in your faith? How would you answer? Fine, OK, Great, Struggling, or something else? How are you? The truth is we all know we should be growing in our faith, but it is quite difficult to gauge how well we are doing. Conversely, we don t really want anyone to know if our growth is in decline. We all need some kind of spiritual health check, to make the necessary adjustments in order to stay healthy. When I was ten I wanted to be a doctor. In the 1950s I used to watch Dr. Kildare, and I was fascinated by that profession. Unfortunately, my biology skills were dire, and by 14 I had decided that I would never make the medical profession. I changed my mind on my future career. When I was 23, God called me to be a follower of Jesus and set about the difficult task of making me like Jesus. He has not changed his mind. He is determined to finish the job. Romans tells me that God is determined to change me. It just takes a few adjustments (quite a lot actually) over the years. Lent is a perfect time to make those adjustments. It is a Spiritual Health Check season to look at our Christian lives and make those necessary changes. For our good. For our health. For our joy. It s not meant to be a drudge or painful or weird. It just takes a little time invested in it. So, this Lent, every Thursday, starting 15 th February, we are combining our health checks with AWAKE worship and prayer from 7-8pm. We will start on time and finish on time. The format will include worship and prayer with about 15 minutes to think through an aspect of our faith such as love, gratitude, excitement, commitment, godliness etc. There are 7 sessions in Lent. For your benefit and health, will you commit yourself to at least 2 sessions? That is one in February, and one in March. Put it in your diary now. The Lord is committed to our spiritual health and he longs for us to give him permission to work in us. Dear Friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well. 3 John 2 Jonathan 1

2 OUR CHURCH UP IN - OUT 5 YEAR PLAN IN ACTION CHRISTIANS AGAINST POVERTY MONEY COURSE Matthew 6:24 "No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money." Friends, the money in our bank accounts is not ours, it is on loan from God, and He cares what we do with it. If we want to serve and honour God, and not the money, we need to be in control of our finances. Because if we are not, then our finances are in control of us and then we serve money and not you guessed it God. So what then, are the signs that we are not in control of our bank balance? Do you pay for Christmas and birthday presents with a credit card? Do you know how much is in your account right now? Do annual bills (like car tax) still surprise you? Do you wish you could give a bit more or save a bit more? Or even save at all? Do you pray for pay day to come? Do you pay for your shopping with a card and then realise you don't know how much you actually spent? Do you wonder where on earth your (His) money goes? Is there a month each year when you're really short of money because it has 3 birthdays and an annual bill like house insurance? If you answered yes to any of the above (or you're just someone who uses money to buy things with) you will benefit from a very simple easy to manage budgeting system designed by CAP (Christians Against Poverty) and handily delivered through the CAP Money Course. The system teaches you how to budget, save, spend and give. It helps you to plan for everyday spending, future spending and those little bumps in the road. I'm confident that every one of you would learn at least one useful thing from the course! Where can I sign up I hear you ask? Well, by the grace of God, myself and Mike Lewis (as CAP Money coaches) will be running one over 3 sessions. The courses will start at 7:30pm in the church lounge, on Wednesday the 7th, 14th and 21st of March. For more info and to sign up talk to or contact myself or Mike. Thanks for reading and God bless you. Keith Corley; ; kcorleymc54@gmail.com Mentoring update and training...on March 5th at 7.30 in church. An opportunity to share experiences and learn more about mentoring. Open to all those involved or interested in mentoring. MENTORING TRAINING AN UPDATE If you are a mentor please can you Clare Taylor so we can keep a record: claireandjeremy@gmail.com If you would like to know more please contact Susie Perkin or Claire Taylor 2

3 THE ALPHA MARRIAGE COURSE April will soon be upon us and once again St Andrew s will be running the brilliant Alpha Marriage Course. The six Wednesday evenings are based around the popular Marriage Course DVD. We begin with some light snacks and a glass of wine, before couples spend the next hour and a half enjoying their partner s company, listening to short talks and discussing the various topics covered each evening. Note: the whole evening is spent entirely as a couple with no group work at all! Everyone who has been on this course with us over the last five years has enjoyed the experience and found it worthwhile. We laugh a lot along the way and couples quickly realise it is a valuable way of spending at least one evening of quality time together during the week. Chat to us if you d like to know more or, speak to other couples who have already done it (we can point you to some!). Our marriages are valuable and we need to cherish and nurture them to withstand all that our busy and complicated lives throw at them. Doing this course is, for your marriage, a bit like the benefit that a service and MOT is to your car! If you have any questions do contact us, otherwise look out for booking forms in the concourse late February. dtfisher88@gmail.com Dave and Tracey Fisher Ten good reasons to visit STACS St Andrew s Coffee Shop Thursdays 10am 12noon 1. You are in need of refreshment and want to meet with friends for a cuppa 2. You have heard about the delicious scones, cookies and cakes that are on offer 3. All profit made from coffee shop takings is donated to mainly local charities and at least 16,000 has been given away in the 14 years it has been in existence 4. In recent years we have supported Headway, Cheltenham Open Door, Longfield Hospice, Gloucester Foodbank and Churchdown Scout Group 5. You are looking after children who need a bit of indoor space in which to play 6. You fancy browsing our Fairtrade goods and purchasing some quality foods and gifts 7. Come and join our group of knitters to produce items of clothing, toys and gifts for charities 8. Learn a new skill or hone an already existing craft skill 9. Experience a warm welcome and get to know some new friends 10. Think about getting involved by joining the coffee shop team of volunteers 3

4 GLOUCESTER ACTION FOR REFUGEES AND ASYLUM SEEKERS Just before Christmas, I met with the team at GARAS Gloucester Action for Refugees and Asylum Seekers. This helped me to understand the immense difficulties facing people entering a foreign country with no family, and no money. GARAS provides a lifeline to such people entering the UK, providing: a safe-space - our clients have suffered the indignity of being processed by a variety of official bodies and therefore it is important that GARAS feels an easy place to come to information, advocacy and advice on health, benefits, immigration, education, careers access to other services food, bedding and household items for urgent needs trauma counselling - many clients have experienced trauma, bereavement, abuse in various ways and require help from our psychotherapists Why am I interested in GARAS? the passage from Matthew 25 verses 31 to 46, where Jesus is talking about the Last Judgement, struck me quite personally a couple of years ago. Living in a quiet suburb of Gloucester, it is easy to think that we are a long way away from those who are hungry, naked, poor, blind. GARAS gives us a way to help people who have sought refuge in our country with little or nothing. The World Café in Gloucester is a venture that works closely with GARAS. Rita, who runs the World Café, is very passionate about the work that she does and has a heart for helping both refugees and local people in Gloucester to develop relationships and a sense of community in a Christian context. St Andrew s currently supports GARAS vital work through regular donations under our Mission giving. The community at St Andrews also supports individual refugees on an informal basis those that come through our doors we befriend and help as best we can, and when a new family is moving into the area GARAS contacts us to ask for help with gathering vital items, such as pushchairs, children s clothes, cooking utensils. World Café also collects good quality clothes from us contact Rita via Facebook if you have clothes to donate. The best way to become personally involved is to visit the World Café in Brunswick Baptist Church it meets twice a month on a Wednesday and can easily be found via its Facebook page. Here, you just need to have a little love in your heart, an appetite for tasty food from around the World and a listening friendly attitude the refugees do all the rest. They are some of the most delightful people you could ever meet. They have been through so much, and yet they reach out to us shy people with open arms. They value our friendship very greatly. GARAS also needs volunteers to help the refugees with their English (a major need), sewing skills, and advocacy in getting through the complex and confusing Government processes and systems. Importantly, we can pray especially for the team at GARAS Adele Owen and her team, Rita Rimkiene in all her dedicated hard work to welcome and love some of the most undeservingly destitute among us. Yours in love in Christ. Sarah Matheou (Mission rep for GARAS) sarahlucym@outlook.com 4

5 WORLD DAY OF PRAYER 2018 All God s creation is very good. Genesis Ch 1 verse 31 The local service is this year being held at Our Ladys Roman Catholic church, Cheltenham Road East, Churchdown on Friday 2 nd March at 10 30am. All God s creation is very good...at least it was until we human beings began to destroy it. God must be very disappointed by our selfishness and thoughtlessness. The service this year,written by the women of Suriname, is one of the most challenging ones we have had presented to us. As happens so often with Women s World Day of Prayer, it is very topical. Caring for God s creation is hugely important and relevant to people of all ages and beliefs. If you d like to give a gift this Mothering Sunday which supports MU projects please look on the Mothers Union website There should also be some leaflets in the church concourse. Both our meetings this month are looking at how we can show our care for God s world. There are many things we can do individually and as churches to care for God s creation. The service will encourage us to think more deeply and to open more discussions about what we can do to protect creation, from recycling to reducing excess packaging. This is not simply a day of prayer written by women from Suriname but it is for all of us who live in, and care for, God s world. Please come and join us together with over three million people across the world on March 2 nd to join together to worship and pray. Janet Ross If you are unable to make our local service here then please look on to see times of services in other local villages and towns to suit you. Catherine Rowland 5

6 Can sing, Can t sing?...which one are you? Are you one of those people who opens your mouth and sings like a lark? Or are you one of those people who either keeps your mouth firmly shut when everyone else is singing, or who groans quietly enough that no one else can hear you? will discover, for the first time, that actually you can do this, and ALL of you will have fun. Some of you will be familiar with Penny Lyon and Kevin Washburn of Out of the Ashes, who are members of the St Andrew s congregation, but who aren t always here on a Sunday morning because they have a ministry that regularly takes them into other churches all across the UK and into Europe. Some of you who know Penny may have experienced her insistence that if you can speak you can sing, and her offer that if you would like, she ll help you get started. Participants in the workshop will all be sent home with a CD to practice with and then, after three weeks of practising in your car, in your bathroom and in your kitchen (the kids will be fed up with you), there will be a rehearsal in the afternoon of the 24 th March 2018, and then you will be invited to join the choir on stage for the finale of the main performance. What s not to like? Well here s your opportunity! On the evening of March 24 th 2018, the Beacon Gospel Choir and Out of the Ashes will be coming to St Andrew s for an evening of jazz, blues and rhythm & blues along with some rafter-raising gospel music in aid of the St Andrew s Mission fund. So first of all save that date. The Beacon Gospel Choir Workshop on March 3 rd 2018 costs 15 per person (which also includes your ticket price for the main event), and may be reserved through the St Andrew s church office. Tickets for the main event on March 24 th 2018 will cost 10 and will be available from the church office in the next few weeks. But even more exciting at this stage is that from 1pm to 4pm on March 3 rd 2018, the choir will be running a workshop for all those of you who would like to come and have a go at singing with a superb gospel choir. Some of you will be instant stars, some of you 6

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8 WORSHIP FOR FEBRUARY 2018 All services will be at St Andrew s unless otherwise stated 4 th February Second Sunday Before Lent 9:00am Holy Communion 10.30am All Age Communion 3.30pm Evening St.Bartholomew 7pm FUEL 11 th February Sunday before Lent 9:00am Holy Communion 10.30am Family Worship 11am St.Bartholomew 7pm FUEL 18 th February Lent 1 9am Holy Communion 10.30am Family Worship 7pm FUEL 25 th February Lent 2 9am Holy Communion 10.30am Family Worship 3.30pm Holy Communion at St.Bartholomew 7pm FUEL USEFUL CONTACTS The Vicar Jonathan Perkin Curate Ben Lillie Children s Workers Alison Summerskill & Laine Lewis Reader Alison Summerskill Youth Pastors Daisy Cordery & Jack Neave Creative Pastor Rhiannon Davies Churchwardens Richard Badley Kevin Sadler Administrator Loraine Yates Treasurer Rachel Limbrick Assistant Treasurers Alice Oakes, Di Rowe PCC Secretary Enid Castle th March Lent 3 9:00am Holy Communion 10.30am All Age Communion 3.30pm 7pm Evening St.Bartholomew FUEL Weekday Services 9:00 am Monday to Friday in the Quiet Room - Morning Prayer 10:00 am every Thursday in the Quiet Room Holy Communion St Andrew s Church Centre Station Road, Churchdown Gloucester GL3 2JT T: admin@standrewschurchdown.org.uk Office Hours Monday-Friday pm 8